Accelerate

Damian

I am definitely dreaming of it. Things that shouldn’t be thought of on a first official date with a woman I’ve searched my entire adult life for. I haven’t even kissed her yet, and I’m already falling apart. She has me at her mercy.

We ride the elevator hand-in-hand, down to the street level where we walk out into the warm summer air. I survey the area to see what’s around, not being familiar with this section of downtown. I didn’t grow up in the city, and despite having lived here for over six years, I’ve spent much of that time working, not exploring.

Angel grabs my hand and drags me toward something she’s spotted. “Oh, you have to try these.”

I look to see a food truck parked near the pier named Talko Loco. Angel’s excitement is contagious, as she trudges along in her stilettos—stilettos that make her calves look amazing. She could drag me to my death right now and I’d be too distracted to notice.

“Dina and I used to come here when she was doing her bachelor’s degree. I haven’t been for so long. You have to try the Carne Asada tacos. They are to die for.”

Who am I to deny the woman her taco dream? We stand in line behind two other couples, and I reach my arm around Angel’s waist, pulling her closer. I may have worked ten hours today, but the last thing I feel right now is tired.

Angel looks up at me, drawing my attention to her dark eyes sparkling under the fading sunlight and taco truck lights. Her eyes close and she turns away, but quickly turns back to me to ask, “Do you trust me?”

No hesitation. “Yes.”

“Let me order for you. I’ve tried everything.” She steps up to the window to order, barely able to see in the window, even wearing heels. Before she commits to an order, she turns back to me. “How do you feel about spicy?”

“The spicier, the better.”

Five minutes later, we’re sitting at a bench across the waterfront park, where Angel unwraps the food, which smells incredible. She tucks her curls behind her ears, staring at the flour tortillas as she licks her lips. Safe to say, this is the first time in my life I wished I was a taco.

She sets one in front of me. “Guarantee, you won’t be needing ketchup for this.”

I lift the taco with one hand, cupping the other beneath it so it won’t drip on my suit, but as soon as I take a bite, I’m so focused on the flavour explosion happening, I don’t care about the mess. I moan with delight as the different spices and aromas mingle together on my tongue. This is exquisite.

It’s not lost on me that I took Angel to a ridiculously expensive restaurant, hoping for an enjoyable meal, and here we are, indulging in food truck fares that blow whatever that was I tried to eat earlier out of the water. Goes to show, I’m not cut out for the “high life”.

I wipe my mouth with a paper napkin, praying I don’t have taco sauce in my facial hair. “This is delicious. It… it’s perfection.”

“Told you. Amazing right?”

So amazing, but not only the food.

We polish off the four tacos Angel purchased, and she suggests finding somewhere to get a margarita to wash it down. If it means I can delay taking her home, I’m down.

She leads me into a decent-looking pub where we sit at the bar and Angel orders her margarita. I’m not a huge fan of sweet drinks, so I opt for whisky. The bartender places our beverages in front of us, and Angel takes a first sip through the straw. Her eyes close and she hums a short tune of admiration. I study her long lashes and the subtle swipe of eyeshadow she wears. Her eyes were always too distracting for me to notice before.

We enjoy the rest of our drink before we agree to head back in the direction of the parking garage. Angel stumbles on our way to the pub door, and I react quickly enough to stop her from falling. I wrap her in my arms, standing there for a moment, not wanting to let go.

“You good?”

She nods. “My feet hurt more than I realized.”

“We can’t have that.” In this situation, my caveman tendencies in her presence come in handy. I scoop her into my arms, princess style, with one arm behind her back, the other under her knees. She instinctively wraps her arms around my neck, making me pause. Here we are, standing three feet away from the Pub’s exit, and I’m too captivated by this woman to move.

Her giggle breaks my trance. “What are you doing?”

I step to the door, pushing it open with my back, exiting onto the sidewalk. “Carrying you. I loved these shoes already, but even more so now.” I waggle my eyebrows, making her laugh again, and I feel the vibrations in my chest. That’s not the only thing I’m feeling there.

“I shouldn’t have worn these shoes. I knew they’d hurt after a while.”

“Why did you?” Is it wrong if I want her to say she wore them for me? Because she thought I’d like them?

“Because I’m short, and I didn’t want to spend the night staring at your chest.”

That sounds like an awesome evening if the roles were reversed. “You’re not that short. What are you, 5′2″?”

“For your information, I am 5 feet, one-and-a-half inches. I’m a small fry and I walk everywhere, so tonight I decided to wear heels I never get the chance to. Had I known you wanted to take a walk, I’d have worn something else, but this is fine with me.” She winks, and I’m done for.

“I’m glad you didn’t.”

“Yeah?” Her playful expression pushes away the burning in my biceps.

“Angel.”

Her eyes flutter closed, and she leans her head into my neck. My steps halt and I can’t stop myself anymore. I lean down to capture her lips in a kiss. The instant we connect, I’m lost in the feel of her mouth on mine. It starts off tender, wanting to convey how much I like her, but before I know it, I set her down and have her backed up against the exterior wall of another restaurant halfway to our destination.

She doesn’t hesitate to match my pace, and soon enough, her hands are raking through my hair. Mine are exploring the curve of her hip with one hand, and the soft skin on her neck with the other. She bites at my lower lip, making me groan into her mouth, which seems to spur her on more. Her lips part, allowing me to taste the margarita that I thought I hated, but mixed with the sweetness of Angel, nothing has ever tasted better.

I’ve been captivated by her since the moment I first saw her, but nothing has compared to this.

“Get a room!” a random pedestrian shouts.

I pull myself back, not wanting to, but also not wanting to embarrass her with an overtly public display of affection. Looking at her face, though, I don’t think she’s embarrassed at all. Her chest is heaving at the same rate as mine. Her lips are swollen and the perfect shade of pink under the streetlights.

“Damian,” she replies with a wide smile. “Was that your plan all along?”

I chuckle. “Totally spontaneous, but I have no regrets.” I lean my head down so my forehead rests on hers. “Have I told you how amazing you are?”

“You may have mentioned it.” The playful expression she’s worn all night disappears. “But you’ll find out what I mean about people not wanting to hear the truth all the time.”

“Maybe you’ll find out that some people appreciate your honesty.”

“We’ll see.” She swats at my chest and her curved lips reappear. “So, do you want me to carry you the rest of the way so we’re even?”

I roar with laughter, picturing this woman trying to lift me at all. Let alone carry me anywhere. “Come here.” I hook my arm under her knees, pulling them up to my chest and allowing her to wrap her arms around me again. With another quick kiss, we’re on our way.

We garner a few strange looks as we giggle and chat all the way back to my car with Angel in my arms, but I couldn’t care less what anyone else thinks of us. I’m too busy having one of the greatest nights of my life.

I open the car door for Angel to climb inside, and she backs in, leaving her legs out the door, surprising me by pulling my tie until I’m at her level. She snakes her hands around the back of my head and pulls me in for a quick kiss.

“Thank you for tonight.”